Sea Shepherd captain goes on trial in Tokyo

The Ady Gil sinking after being hit by the Japanese whaler

May 2010. The criminal trial against Sea Shepherd Conservation Society volunteer Captain Pete Bethune began in Tokyo on May 27th. Captain Bethune was arrested in March and remains in maximum-security detention in Tokyo. He was detained after boarding the Japanese whaling vessel Shonan Maru 2 in February to protest the sinking of Sea Shepherd's vessel Ady Gil (which he captained) as well as Japan's illegal whaling operations. He faces several charges, including trespassing and property damage.

$3 million invoice
Captain Bethune boarded the Shonan Maru 2 to present the captain of that vessel with a three million dollar invoice for damages arising from the Shonan Maru 2's destruction of the vessel Ady Gil. Bethune also boarded the vessel in an effort to stop it from slaughtering more whales, and his actions did cause the Shonan Maru 2 to prematurely withdraw from the illegal whaling operation in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

Sea Shepherd's Seattle-based law firm, Harris & Moure, will have two of its lawyers in Tokyo during the trial both to assist Bethune's Japanese defence team and to explain Sea Shepherd's position regarding the trial and Japan's illegal whaling operations.